To Strike Thy Shadow
by Theo 'Blitz' Leung
Summary: How does Ganondorf make such a perfect replica of Link in the form of Dark Link? Is a strong magic spell, using the power of the Triforce...or perhaps he had someone else...just like Link...


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To Strike Thy Shadow

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By: Theodore Leung

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theoleung@sprint.ca

**Author's Note:** Again, me and my theories about how Dark Link is formed. ^^ I know I already wrote smething about it, but hey, why can't I write something else? As some might know already, this Zelda: the Ocarina of Time fic is not related to my other one, I just like expressing my theories. ^^ Enjoy.

Oh, and if this fic conflicts with Majora's Mask in any manner, don't lame me. I never played 'Mask.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Zelda, Nintendo does. Oh well, I write what I write.

* * * * * *

The lightning bolt struck its target, like a javelin of sheer electricity thrown from the heavens to incur their wrath upon the mortals of Hyrule. The tree in the Lost Woods fell, its roots unable to support the now burning wood.

It was an omen, an omen of impending disaster. Link could feel it through his bones, watching the tree slowly burn to ashes right in front of his eyes. The child lost seven years becoming the Hero of Time, and now he had a chance to use those seven lost years. The omen didn't discourage his attitude. He knew Ganondorf was defeated, sealed away in the next realm. Nothing could be as bad as a mad man gaining the power of the Triforce, or at least, part of it.

Or could there be worse?

"I must be kidding myself," Link said out loud to himself, followed by the clap of thunder. Link sighed, not afraid. Navi left him once Link finished becoming the Hero of Time. She now tended to mingle with her other fairy friends.

Rain began to pour down, but the young Hyrule child didn't care, only began his slow walk back home, his boots sloshing through the mud that was created by the down pour.

* * * * * *

The young Hyrule boy was back at his 'home', not truly his home, but also the closest thing he had to a home. Kokiri Village lay before him, untouched so far by the rainstorm that quickly pushed away the previous sunshine, like a bully that pushed someone out of the line for their own purposes.

The rain didn't bother the boy at all, being through far worse in his 'adult' life then this. However, the thunder remained clear in his mind, especially the bolt that struck the tree that fell only a few moments back on his return to 'home'. The flames that tree exhaled stayed clear in his mind, still believing it was an omen of sorts that Link should be wary about. Something was about to happen in the near future, something that would affect this boy greatly.

The Hyrule boy shook the thought out of his mind once more, taking it all as superstition and paranoia that encompassed his mind after his heroic duties.

Maybe, it could be explained better as the sixth sense he acquired for this sort of thing during his trial as the Hero of Time.

He sighed, deciding it be best to return to his abode before he caught a code standing out in the rain thinking about all these thoughts that muddled his mind. The boy temporarly used his small shield as an umbrella until he made it back to his home.

* * * * * *

Link quickly tossed his wet shield onto the wooden ground of the tree house he lived in. Water trickled down the sides and over the floor, slipping through the small cracks that littered it. Next, he hanged his hat on a hook on the wall, water dripping down from the soaked top and onto the floor, also slipping into the cracks below.

The boy then unhooked his sheath over his back, re-clipping and placing the loop around his wrist. The weapon hanged lightly, Link wondering if he should return the weapon or not to its place within Kokiri Village. He already took the blade without permission as it is, and he also thought he really didn't need to use the weapon anymore for the time being. If he needed it, he could just retrieve it again. Then again, if he made any intervention at all against Ganondorf now, he knew it would affect the future he fought for in his 'past' life.

Another clap of thunder blasted against his ears, the flash rippling through the night sky over Kokiri Village. Link winced at the noise, glancing backwards and out into the pouring rain. The boy sighed, wondering if he was growing paranoid or not of the enviroment around him.

* * * * * *

Link slashed the tree across with a crosscut, skinning over the bark of the wood. His left hand followed the Kokiri blade, joining his right hand in gripping it right afterwards and raising it into the air. In the next instant, he slashed down, then twisted around three-hundred and sixty degrees to the right, striking the tree once more with a hard slash.

The boy huffed, jamming the small weapon into the dying tree he practiced on.The boy fell onto his back afterwards, staring at the cloudless sky above him though a large gap in the trees at the forest.

"I'm all alone..." the boy whispered, closing his eyes and recalling the images of those memories of the future he held in his mind. "I can't really talk to anyone in Hyrule...I have to be alone...or else...if I speak something wrong...there may be catastrophic reprecutions..."

He opened his eyes, leaping back up to his feet in one swift movement. The boy withdrew the weapon from the tree, returning it back to the sheath on his back. He took the discarded wooden shield from the ground and replaced it on his back over his weapon.

"Sooner or later, Ganondorf will come here...and then all the Kokiri will disappear..." Link thought, glancing left and right. "I should go...before I do something wrong..." The boy sighed softly, finding it difficult to move away from the battleground that he should not interrupt. His will kept him in Hyrule, even if it meant the destruction of all...

* * * * * *

The small boy slashed the much larger Stalfos across the 'chest', back flipping out of the way of the downwards strike from the bigger weapon afterwards. Link may be weaker in his smaller frame, but that smaller frame also made him more nimble then his larger self, something he was thankful for, as his body could also absorb less then his 'adult' self.

The boy lunged forward, slashing the Stalfos' left arm and rolling underneath it, slipping away from another potentially fatal attack from the large skeleton. Link quickly turned around, ramming his blade into the spine of the skeleton warrior, taking advantage of the skeleton's slower frame and attacking before it turned around. Link then kicked off the back of the skeleton, back flipping and landing gracefully. Quickly afterwards, he rolled backwards, the blade of the large monster crashing into the grass where Link used to stand.

He leaped back to his feet, tapping the side of his blade against the wooden shield before slashing the air before him, infuriating the skeleton warrior more. The small boy smirked, tapping his shield some more while waiting for the skeleton to approach him.

Link barely dodged the massive crosscut by leaping over the low swipe, falling to his knees. Using the momentum, he pushed back up off the ground in an upward slash before, leaping backwards, out of blade range from his foe. He then dashed forward, evading an overhand slash then leaping up and coming back down spiralling like a tornado, slashing once against the skeleton with the weapon before landing on his feet.

The Stalfos fell into a pile of bones after the last attack, allowing Link to breath slowly with his victory over the larger adversary, gripping his weapon tightly. Thunder and lightning clapped and ignited in teh sky above, the boy not noticing until after the defeat of the Stalfos. He looked up, wondering again if it was an omen.

The Kokiri Forest was abandoned by the others, but Link stayed behind, trying with all his energy to save it from falling under the influence of Ganondorf.

A brief, loud clapping of hands took Link's attention, forcing his gaze towards the source of all the trouble.

On his ebony horse sat Ganondorf, clapping to the marvelous display of swordsmanship the small child demonstrated. He stopped his clapping, sneering at the boy as well for being so foolish.

"You must have a deathwish..." Ganondorf told Link, watching the boy intently from his steed, the same boy he saw before at Hyrule Castle. "Boy..."

"Leave here!" Link demanded, ready for another battle against the evil.

"Do you think you can defeat me with that knife, boy," he sneered some more, raising a rather larger blade from a sheath on the dark horse. Nevertheless, Link stood defient, his emotions and sense of justice overriding his sense of logic long ago.

The horse galloped forward, carrying its rider with it towards the lone defender of the small village. Link raised his small sword and shield, preparing for the attack.

Steel crashed into wood as Link was thrown off his feet and backwards. He tumbled and rolled, his shield shattered by the force of the attack against it. He skidded to a halt in the dirt of the village, eyes closed, his body trembling in pain from the shock of just one attack.

A small drip of water fell on his forehead, making him groan and opening his eyes. He glared up, seeing it beginning to rain in the village, and maybe on Hyrule itself. Slowly, he lifted his body with his arms, knees still on the ground.

"Deathwish..." Ganondorf repeated, raising his blade towards the boy who tried with little luck to defend the village.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!" Link screamed out, getting knocked backwards as a fireball crashed against his body, singing his clothes, but dissipating on impact. The boy crashed back onto the ground, eyes closed tightly, breath harsh and long as he tried to get up once more, unsuccessfully. Ganondorf shook his head in disappointment, expecting more from the boy, but knew that wasn't true after their first encounter.

Link raised his hand, trembling in pain as Ganondorf galloped away, to inflict his evil upon the forest. The boy's vision faded to nothing, falling unconscious in the rain and thunder that engulfed the land.

* * * * * *

His senses were aroused by the dripping of water around him. Link slowly opened his eyes, trying to determine his bearings after he passed out. The faint echo of a large door opening caught his attention, followed by the hollow close of that same door a few seconds later. The sound of feet splashing through shallow water tingled against his ears. The sound slowly grew louder, prompting Link to draw his blade and shield. The boy stepped towards the edge of the sand island over the shallow water, looking down at his own reflection.

He saw himself, older, and carrying the Master Sword and Hylian Shield. He gazed at the pair of weapons without the reflection, wondering where those two particular items came from. More to point, he wondered now how long he was out for…he only remembered the fight with Ganondorf, and even that was fuzzy in his mind.

The footsteps in the water became clear, as did the location. It was the Water Temple, the same room where he fought Dark Link so long ago.

To his amazement, Dark Link approached him, sword and shield ready for the fight, even if both were just pitch black imitations of the Hero of Time.

The two circled around each other for a long time, neither making a move upon the other. Both were in a defensive pose, shield and sword ready to repel the other's attack.

Dark Link surged forward first, leaping into the air and crashing down with his blade. Metal hit metal as Link raised his shield to block the blow. The original quickly followed by swing his blade in a crosscutting arc. The Master Sword hit Dark Link's sword as he came down, the blow partially throwing Dark Link off balance, but not enough to shatter his stance. Nevertheless, Link tried to cross the barrier, striking again with an upward slash. Dark Link in turned leaped backwards and out of the way, the two at a standoff once again.

This time, Link decided to strike first, lunging forward with his weapon. Dark Link parried, the two blades circling around as Dark forced Link's weapon up and then back down, locked in place. The pair pushed against each other, trying to throw the other off balance. Finally, both decided the attempt futile and leaped back, releasing the lock on each other's blade.

Link gazed at his adversary, trying to read the moves of someone who fights like himself. It wouldn't be hard to read, but reading _past_ those moves would be more difficult, since both pretty much knew the strengths and weaknesses of each other.

Once more, metal collided as Dark attacked, pushing Link back with unprecedented force. Link gasped in surprise as he was knocked down just from the force alone. Dark's blade slashed down towards the fallen hero, narrowly blocked by Link. The Hero of Time rolled to the side next, leaping back to his feet and raising his shield to block another blow from Dark. With little time, Link slashed with the Master Sword, impacting against Dark's shield. However, the defence and the attack in split second intervals left his centre open for strike.

Dark took the opportunity, quickly sliding his blade away from Link's shield, then ramming it into the stomach of the Hero of Time. Link cried out in pain, eyes wide, wondering how he could let that have happened…

Then he remembered how he defeated Dark Link in the first place…

* * * * * *

Link watched the body of Dark Link slump over his shoulder. The Hero of Time withdrew the blade quickly, the body of his shadow falling to the wet surface of the temple floor.

"Is this Ganondorf's power? To imitate me?" Link thought, sheathing his blade. The body of Dark Link disintegrated slowly into dust, leaving on Link and Navi behind. "Is it imitation? What's this feeling of foreboding…or impending doom?"

"Link, what's wrong?" his fairy companion asked, hovering around his head.

"Nothing…nothing is wrong…let's go…" Link spoke, continuing down past where his fallen shadow lay. Nevertheless, the Hero of Time never lost that feeling of uneasiness.

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**Author's Note:**

Yay, I finally finished it, after I dunno how long. Ah well. My second theory of Dark Link, and I'm pretty sure this conflicts with 'Mask…ah well. If you don't understand what happened, e-mail me…I'll explain it…


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